Soils of the Jornada Basin are the substrate on which Jornada ecosystems reside and interact. Understanding soils and plant-soil feedback processes have been integral to understanding vegetation change and desertification. Formal studies of Jornada soils extend back to 1918. The most detailed study of Jornada soils is the USDA-SCS Desert Soil-Geomorphology Project, a 400-mi2 study area that includes the southernmost areas of the Jornada Experimental Range (JER) and Chihuahuan Desert Rangeland Research Center (CDRRC). This chapter highlights findings of soil and geomorphology studies, discusses factors and processes of soil development, and lists several ways soils of the Jornada Basin carry a memory of past climates.

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